Numbering-head.



Z3 za /f/ L 73 76@ 7,2 77 70076 Z if 1f W. OLSON.

NUMBERING HEAD.

APPLscATloN FILED SEPT. l. 1914.

LQ. Patented Oct. 24, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

W. OLSON.

NUMBERING HEAD.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. I. I9I4.

LQQAM. Patented 001;. 24, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

"if f/ l? a 3 j? ini CII

WILLIAM etsen, or NEW vonk, iv. Y.

'ivUiuBnnmo-i-inan. 4

necesaria Specication of Letters Patent. I

appucauoaaiea september i., 1914... serial ivqfeaaeii.

To alla-'7mm t may concern.'

Re it known that I, VILLIAM-Onsoma citizen of the United States,residing at the city of New York, in the borough of Bronx and State ofNew York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inNumberingleads, of which the following is a full., clear, and exactdescription,

This invention relates to a numbering head or machine and has specialapplication to devices of this character which are adapted to be insetin a type form; the numbering disks carry printing characters on theirperipheries and are actuated progressively each time the type form isbrought into contact with the platen, to thereby successively number thesheets, tickets or other matter, as they are printed.

Devices operating on this general principle have heretofore been used,and it is the object of the present invention to improve the structuralfeatures to provide a device which isl o-f an extremely simple andcompact construction, positive in operation, and in which the actuatingmechanism is entirely inclosed so that there is practically little, ifany, danger of it becoming clogged or otherwise getting out of order.

With these objects in view, one of the important features of theinvention resides in the provision of an internal pawl which is arrangedwithin the supper-tine` shaft upon which the numbering disks are freelymounted, which pawl is adapted t0 engage with notches in the innerperipheries of the disks to progressively actuate them when anoscillatory movement is imparted to the pawl.

Another important feature of the invention relates to the constructionof the casing which is provided with two separate compartments in one ofwhichthe driving member is positioned. while the disks are accuratelyand snugly fitted into the other, so that any lateral movement of thedisks is prevented..

Other important features of the invention reside in the specificconstruction of the radiallv movable tvpe block which carries one of theprinting` characters: and the particular form of driving mechanism shownwhich is entirely positive in its operation,"c`ons isting ofareciprocatory block carrying a rack which is adapted to engage amutilated pinion upon a shaft which carries the pawl for progressivelymoving the vnu.rjrilier-ng disl .the numbering Still. other-featuresthe. inventioniwill Y' `i raient-ea' oet. saisie. j

be apparent to those skilled inthe art, from I the detailed descriptionhereinafter to follow, and. will be particularly pointed out in theappended claims.

In the drawinejs: Figure l shows aplan of a numbering head embodying thefeatures of the present invention; Fig 2 is an enlarged sectional viewof the head, taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 3; Fig. 3 is a transversesection of Fig. 2, taken on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2: Fig. d isatransverse section taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a viewsimilar to Fig. 3, showing the pawl in the position it assumes whenthe'reciprocatory. block or driving member is in contactwith theplaten:Fie'. 6 is a detail view of Fig. 5, showing the pawl in the position itassumes when the driving memberis released; Fig. 7 is a detail view ofthe second numberina disk from the right. as shown in Fig. 2: Fig., S isa detail view of the pawl; Fig. 9 is a transverse section of Fig. 8.showing the inner peripheries of the numherinQ disks in dotted lines:Fig. 10 is a plan of the casing with all of the parts removed, ex-

cept the retaining' pawls; Fig. 11 is a deail showing' the drivingmechanism for the shaft, which. carries the actuating nawl; and Fig. l2is a detail view of a modified means for holding the actuating shaft inplace.

The numbering disks and driving mechanism are mounted in a substantiallyboxlike casing' l, open at the top, which is of a suitable sizeto beinset in the type fori-n, the casing being shownin svbstantially itsactual size in l. This casino' is. divided by a vertical transversepartition 2 into two separate rectangularlvshaped compartments. Circula1apertures are provided in the end wall of the lare'er of thesq compartments and in the partition cconstituting bearings fora stationarv'shaft 3, which extends the length of the larger coiiirartment only. Thestationary shaft is held in the eX- act position in which it is shown inFig. 4, bv means of a set screw 4, the shaft being' preferably spottedor countersunk at the point on which the end of the set scew hears toprevent its inadvertent rotation.

Freely mounted upon the shaft 3 `are a plurality ofnumbering disks, eachcarrying the raised characters froin zero to 9 onA its periphery.

head illustrated',

In -the specific embodiment of five 'such 1in,

,or otherwise secured thereto, the disks and ratchet wheels beingaccurately machined so that when they'are assembled in place in thelarger compartment, they will entirely fill the space between thepartition and the end wall of the casing which will prevent anyinadvertenty lateral movement of the disks along their supporting shaft.The middle Vor the bottom of the larger compartment is ypreferablyfcutaway, while the interiorlower corners of this compartment are filledwith triangular shaped blocks 11 and 12 preferably yintegral with thecasing. The block 11 has a plurality of vertically disposed slots 13thereinV corresponding to the number of vthe numbering disks used,lwhich slots are positioned directly beneath theV respective ratchet'wheels 10 carried by these disks. A longitudinal semi-circular recess14C is provided in the block 11, into which is fitted a stationary shaft15, supported at its ends in the end walls of the compartment.Y Thisshaft carries a plurality of pawls 16, the ends of which extend outbevond their pivotal point and are positioned in the slots 18. An eoualnumber of slots 17 are arranged in the triangular block 12, which arearranged in transverse alinement to the slots 13 and are adapted toreceive the free ends of the pawls 16` whereby the pawls are preventedfrom any lateral movement or from any tendency to tilt along theirlongitudinal axes and are always maintained in a position to engage theteeth of the corresponding ratchet wheels in a direction normal to theircoactingsurfaces. Cylindrical recesses are provided in the block 12.which recesses cut the slots 17 and form chambers into which areinserted coiled springs 18, the end of the pawls 16 resting upon thesesprings, which, bv theirtension hold the pawls in engagement with theratchet wheels 10. As will be clear from Fig. 2, the ratchet wheel andpawl coperati'ng with the numbering disk 5 carrying the digits arepreferably made heavier thanV the others, since this disk is actuatedmost frequently, and will occasion a greater wear upon these parts.

Positioned in the smaller of the two compartments in the casing is areciprocatory block or driving member 19, which is substantiallyrectangular in shape, but has its upper surface curved, which surface isadapted to be engaged bv the platen as the numbering head` tcgether withthe type form, is brought into contact therewith. lf desired, printingcharacters may also .be

placed upon this surface, as for example, theV maintained in extendedposition bv two helically coiled springs 20 (see Fig. 10), which fityfor the major portion of their length into cylindrical chambers in theblock which prevents any lateral distortion of the spring. Cylindricalrecesses 20 are also provided in the bottom of the compartment in whichthe ends of the springs rest for the same purpose.

Centrally disposed in the block 19 is an elongated slot 21, the ends ofwhich. are preferably semi-circular. as will be later referred to.V lnone side wall of this slot are formed a plurality of notches 22, forminga rack having a single tooth. An oscillatory shaft 23 extends the entirelength of the casing" and is mounted for a. portion of its length in a.cylindrically-formed recess 21 in the stationary shaft 3,' while itsother end is supported in a suitable bearing 23 formed in the end wallsof the smaller compartment. The recess 24 is eccentric to the axis ofthe stationary shaft 3 and its periphery cuts the outer periphery of thestationarjy shaft to provide a. longitudinal opening` through which thepawl carried by the shaft engages with the inner periphery of thenumbering disks as will be later referred to.

The shaft 23 is provided with teeth 25 adjacent one end thereof forminga mutilated pinion, adapted to engage the notches 22 so that thereciprocatory movement of the block is changed into oscillatory movementof this shaft, the semi-circular wall at the lower end of the elongatedslot 21 forming a stop to limit the movement of the block in its upwarddirection. The teeth 25 of the mutilated pinion are of a lengthsufficient to lit snugly against the side walls of the smallercompartment and will, for this reason. prevent any lateral movement ofthe shaft. The bearing 23 in the end of the casing adjacent the smallercompartment is provided with notches 24 of a shape and size to permitthe teeth of the mutilated pinion to pass through the same, so that theshaft may be correctly positioned within the casing, these notches beingso arranged that they will permit the teeth 25 to be passed laterallyinto the notches 22, when the block 19 is in the position it assumeswhen the driving member is in contact with the platen. Instead offormingnotches 24 in the bearing or Aopening 23, this opening may bemade of sufficient diameter to permit the teeth 25 to freely passtherethrough. A collar 25 is then fitted on the end of the shaft whichis of the same thickness as the casing walls and it is held in place inthe opening 23 by a set screw 26 passing down through the casing wall.This modified con struction is shown in Fig. 12 and permits a morerapidly assembling of the parts as it is then not necessary to bring thenotches momia,

in therack carried by the driving member into alinement with the notchesin the casing.

A segmental-shaped recess 26 is cut in the shaft 23 oppositethenuinbering disks, which recess is of sufficient depth to receive anactuating pawl 27, which is suitably pivoted in the recess upon` a pin28. The pawl 27 is freely mounted upon this pin and has a portion of itssurface intermediate its ends and surrounding the pin cut awav as at29,Y to providea recess in which a coiled spring 30, which is mounted onthe pin Q8 is adapted to lit. One end of this spring engages the shaft,while the other end engages the pawl in such a manner as to rotate thepawl in a counter-clockwise direction, as shown in F ig. 3. The pawl 27consists of an L- shaped bar of sufficient length to snugly t betweenthe side walls of the recess 2G, so that the pawl will have no lateralmovement relative to the shaft 23. rlhe outstanding leg of the pawl hasformed thereon stepped teeth which have been designated 3l, 32, 33, 34and 35, tive teeth being provided of a width to correspond to the fivenumbering disks, the teeth beingof varying lengths, with the tooth 3lwhich engages with the disk 5 the longest and the other teeth graduallydecreasing` in length as they approach the other end of the pawl.

Cut in the inner periphery of each of the numbering disks to 9,inclusive, are a plurality of equally spaced notches or ratchet f teethwhich are ten in number corres )onding to the characters from O to 9,which are formed on the periphery of each of the disks. Nine of thenotches in each disk, which have been designated 36, are of uniformdepth, while one deep notch 37 is provided on each of the disks with theexception of the disk 9 which need not have such a notch, but the samemay be provided if it is desired to make all of the wheels uniform,since it will not prevent the progressive actuation of the disks. Thenotches 37 in each of the wheels aie of uniform depth.

lnset in each of the disks 6. 7 and 8 is a radially movable type blockwhich is adapted to be retracted to a non-printing position, the blockin the disk 6 being designated 38, which will alone be described, theother being identical in construction. This block is substantiallyrectangular in shape and is set in a similarly shaped recess in thedisk, the ratchet wheel 1() which is secured to one of the end faces ofthe disk holding it against lateral displacement. The head of the blockis preferably enlarged providing a shoulder 39 which slides in a slot 40on the face of the disk. This head carries the raised character Zero.Depending from the inner end of the block is an angularly-disposedshoulder 41, which is adapted to abut y`against the side wallof anangularlwdsposed V-shaped recess or groove'lQ cut in the top peripherialsurface of the stationary shaft 3, as will be clear from Fig. 7, whichwill lock the movable type block in its retracted position while thenumbering disk remains in its initial position. An

kit

arcuately shaped groove all is cut in the f face of the numbering disk6,'in which recess is placed a similarly shaped spring` 45, which isheld in place in the groove by the ratchet wheel l0. One end of this isadapted to rest in a transverse groove 46 cut in the type block. Thisspring is so arranged, that it will tend to throw the movable type blockinto printing` position, or to a position where its raised character isin circumferential al'inenient with the other characters on thenumbering` disk. The spring also serves as a stop to limit the outwardmovement of the type block when it reaches this position, since thewalls of the groove in the disk and block will both abut against thespring. Then the numbering disk is rotated in a counter-clockwisedirection (see Fig. 7) the angularly-disposed shoulder will be carriedout of locking engagement with the upper wall of the groove 42 and theshoulder 4l will then coact with the other wall of the groove, to aidthe spring in throwing the type block to its outer position.

The operation of the numbering head is as follows: Referring first toFigs. 2, 3 and 4, in which the parts are shown in their initialposition.` the raised characters at the top of each of the wheels iszero, and it may be here stated. that the zero space on the numberingdisk 9 is left blank and cut away so to be below the plane of the otherzero characters, since it is never necessary to print zero with thisdisk. The radially movable type blocks which carry the zeros for theintermediate wheels, are, when the parts are assembled, arranged so thatthey will be in their retracted position in which they are locked by theshoulder 41, as has been described. lt will also be seen from Figs.- 3and e, that in the initial position of the numbering head each of thedeep notches in the wheels 5 to 8 inclusive, are in aline ment and soarranged that the teeth 3l to inclusive, of the pawl 27, lie in thesame, the tooth 35 engaging a notch 36 in the periphery of the numberingdisk 9. lf the numbering head is then brought into engagement with theplaten, the zero on the digit wheel will alone print. The block 19 isalso caused to move downwardly from the position shown in Fig. 3, to the-position shown in Fig. 5, and through the rack and pinion connection,the shaft 23 will be roics' iio`

iis

tated a partial revolution in aclockwise dicient` distance -tolpermit-the toothy 31 .te ene-1- gage a notch 36 in the digit wheel 5.During this rotation of the shaft the numbering disks are prevented frombeing carried therewith, by the pawls 16 which are in engagement withthe teeth in the ratchet wheels 10, each of the pawls being held incorrect position by the springs 18 and the slots in the casing, as hasbeen described. Vihen the pawl has reached the position shown in Fig. 5,itwill be seen that since the tooth 31 is in engagement with one of thenotches 36' in the digit wheel 5, the teeth 82, 33, 34 and 35 which areof less length, are not ina position to engage the notches 36 in theother numbering disks. As the bed of the press moves away from theplaten the block 19 is returned to its original lposition'by'the springs20, which will again rotate the pawl in the opposite direction to itsnormal position. or to the position of the pawl shown in Fig. 6. Thetooth 31 which is in engagement with the notch 36 in the digit wheel 5will therefore carry this wheel one step forwardly to bring the raisedcharacter 1 at the top of the periphery of the digit wheel so that upona second movement of the bed, the character 1 Will be printed instead ofZero. The actuation of the numbering head for the next eightoscillations ofthe pawl will be the same., the characters 2 to 9inclusive, being broughtto printing position by a step-by-step movementof the disk 5. Upon the neXt oscillation of the shaft and pawl the deepnotch 87 in the digit wheel will bein a position to be engaged by thepawl when. the block is moved downwardly, or in other words, the deepnotch in the digit wheel will be in a position to be engaged by the pawlwhen in the position shown in Fig. 5. This will'permit the second tooth32 to engage one of the uniformly cut notches 36 in the numbering disk6, which carries the tens characters, so that when the reciprocatingblock resumes its p0- sition under the intiuence under the springs 20,both wheels 5 and 6 will be rotated, bringing the character 1 on thetens wheel and the character zero' on the digit wheel in a position toprint. The rotation of the numbering disk 6 in a counter-clockwisedirection, as viewed in Fig. 7, will, as has been described, throw theangularly-disposed shoulder 41 out of locking engagement with the wallson' the groove 42 in thestationary shaft, and the spring 45 will thenforce this block radially outwardly until the character carried therebyis brought into a printing position. As has been described, theangularly-disposed shoulder coaeting with the other wall of the groovewill serve as a cam to throw this type block outwardly. On the eleventh`oscillation of the pawl the digit' disk will again alone be actuated,since the deep notch in the digit wheel has been mailed .one step,.fronntlie Ppstea .in ,ivllch iA the deep notch can be engaged by thetooth 31. Operation will then be continued, the digit wheel completing asecond revolution by 'a step-by-step movement until the deep notch 37 isagain brought into a position to be engaged by the tooth 81, which willpermit a second step-by-step movement of the disk 6 to bring thecharacter 2 into printing position. The operation for the hundreds disk7, thousands disk 8, and tens' of thousands disk 9, is similar, thehundreds disk 7 being actuated after the numbering disk G has made acomplete revolution, and the deep notch therein has been brought intoalineinent with' the deep notchuin the disk 5, which will permit thetooth 33 to engage a notch 36 on the periphery of the disk 7. Theoperation vof the remaining wheels is similar and need not further bedescribed.

ViThile l have shown a numbering head whicli-is especially adapted foruse in printing presses, it is not my intention to limit the inventionto this particular use, as it is obvious that the important features ofthe invention; the internal pawl and its associated parts, theconstruction of the casing` and pawls mounted therein are capable ofbeing used with any forni of numberinghead and machine which it isdesired to progressively actuate a plurality of numbering disks.

.I claiin2- 1. In a numbering machine, a casing open 'at the top andVdivided into separate compartments, a plurality of numbering` disksmounted for independent rotation in one of said compartments andcompletely filling the same, a driving` block snugly fitted into theother of said compartments. a shaft passing through both said blocks anddisks, means associated with said driving block and shaft foroscillating the latter and means including a part mounted on said shaftengaging the interior of said disks for progressively actuating them.

2. In a numbering machine, a box-like casing open at the top and dividedinto sepaiate compartments,v a plurality of numberling disks mounted forindependent rotation s in one of sald compartments and completelyfreely-anointed, saldar-.hait .hariasfsa essen trically disposed recesstherein cutting its peripheral surface, a second shaft eccentric to thefirst named shaft and positioned in the recess in said first named shaftand a stepped paWl carried in a recess in said second named shaftengaging` the inner peripheries of said disks to progressively actuatethem.

4f. in a numbering machine, a plurality of disks, a stationary shaftupon which said disks are freely mounted, ratchet Wheels and paWls forpreventing movement of said disks in one direction, said shaft having an-eccentrically disposed recess therein cutting` its peripheral surface,a second shaft eccentric to said first named shaft and positioned in therecess therein, said second named shaft having a recess therein, astepped pavvl mounted in said recess, a plurality of notches in theinner periphery of each of said disks,

said pawl engaging said notches to progres sively actuate said disk uponan oscillatory movement imparted to said shaft and means foroscillating` said shaft.

5. in a numbering machine, a casing, a plurality of numbering disks, astationary shaft upon which said disks are freely mounted, said shafthaving,` a recess therein cutting' its peripheral surface, anoscillatory shaft in said recess, a stepped pawl in said recessconnected to said second named shaft, said stepped pawl and connectionsto said second named shaft being positioned entirely Within said recess.

in Witness whereof, I subscribe my signature, in the presence of twoWitnesses.

WLLIAM OLSON.

Witnesses:

GEO. C. CHENEY, HENRY MOUPLEY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, ID. C.

